Our Team

Management & Business Development

Thomas W. Wirth was promoted to Executive Vice President, Division Manager of the Wealth Management Group at Chemung Canal Trust Company in 2015. He began his career at Chemung Canal in 1987 and joined the Investment Department in 1990 as a Portfolio Manager and was elected Trust Investment Officer in 1993. In 1996, Mr. Wirth became the Finance/Asset/Liability Manager and Bank Portfolio Manager and was elected Assistant Vice President. In 1998, he was elected Vice President and in 1999 returned to the Investment Department as the Investment Services Department Manager, Senior Investment Officer and was promoted in 2004 to Senior Vice President.

Mr. Wirth is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) and earned his B.S. in Business Administration from Wake Forest University. He is a member of the Association of Investment Managers & Researchers. He currently serves as a board member and Past-President of the Arnot Art Museum and also serves on the CareFirst NY board.

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Mark Lasch joined Capital Bank in July 2017 as Senior Vice President and Group Executive of the Bank’s Capital Region Wealth Management Group. Mr. Lasch was most recently Senior Vice President and Senior Trust Officer with Key Private Bank, and has nearly 30 years of wealth management and estate planning experience. Before his nearly 24 years at Key, Mr. Lasch held positions at Norstar Bank and Fleet Bank. He also spent 12 years working in the surety bond industry.

Mr. Lasch received his Bachelor of Arts degree from LeMoyne College in Syracuse, NY. He grew up in the Albany area and presently serves on the boards of the Albany Symphony Orchestra, The St. Anne’s Institute Foundation and the Finance Committee of 15-LOVE. He is a past Trustee and past Treasurer of the Fort Orange Club in Albany.

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Ed Morton was named Binghamton Regional Wealth Management Group Executive in 2012 and was promoted to Senior Vice President in 2015. He holds a Certified Trust and Financial Advisor designation from the American Bankers Association. He joined Chemung Canal Trust Company in 2009 with 15 years of experience in the wealth management field, mainly in Philadelphia, PA. Mr. Morton held positions at Sovereign Bank Private Client Services as Vice President and Market Manager, at Bank of America Wealth Management as Vice President and Team Leader, and at BNY/Mellon Wealth Management as Assistant Vice President and Relationship Manager. Mr. Morton earned his B.S. degree in Business Management from Cornell University. He currently serves on the board of trustees of the UHS Foundation, is a board member and treasurer of A New Hope Center, a board member and treasurer of the Binghamton Club, and a board member of the Tioga County Chamber of Commerce.

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Investment Services

Joseph J. Tascone returned to Chemung Canal Trust Company in September 2015 to assume the position of Investment Services Department Manager, Senior Investment Officer of the Wealth Management Group, having previously served in that same capacity at Chemung Canal from 1987 to 1999. Mr. Tascone has more than 33 years of investment experience, including six years as the Chief Investment Officer at Rockland Trust Company in Massachusetts, and he has held senior investment management positions at Key Trust Company and Bank of America/U.S. Trust. He began his investment career at M&T Bank in Buffalo, New York, in 1981, and has also worked in the public accounting and insurance industries. Mr. Tascone received his B.B.A. from St. Bonaventure University, and is a U.S. Navy veteran.

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Michael D. Blatt joined the Bank in 1999 as a Research / Portfolio Manager, was elected Assistant Vice President in 2000, and was promoted to Vice-President/Senior Investment Officer in 2005. Mr. Blatt has over twenty years in analytical and investment experience. His key responsibilities include recommending and monitoring stocks for the Guidance List in addition to managing client accounts. He previously worked for Registered Investment Advisor John G. Ullman & Associates, Inc. as an Account Executive and Jordan Gary & Assoc. where he was responsible for marketing, portfolio selection and management, trading and preparing financial plans. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst and earned his B.S. in Finance from Penn State and M.B.A. from Duke University – Fuqua School of Business. Mr. Blatt currently serves on the board of the Science & Discovery Center.

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Michael S. Lares joined Chemung Canal Trust Company in January 2004 as a Portfolio Manager. He has an MBA with Honors in Finance from St. John’s University in New York, Tobin School of Business. He was elected Assistant Vice President in 2005, promoted to Vice President in 2010, and promoted to Senior Investment Officer in 2018. Michael is a CFP® (Certified Financial Planner™) professional providing portfolio management, technical analysis, portfolio modeling, and financial planning services to Wealth Management clients, not-for-profits, retirement plans, and institutions, utilizing his analytical skills and broad financial experience. Michael also is a graduate of NYBA Trust Investment School, The American College, and has attended the Stonier Graduate School of Banking at the University of Pennsylvania.

He is active in the community, serving as an Executive Board Member and Treasurer for the Chemung County Historical Society, and as an Executive Board Member and Vice Chairman for the Arnot Health Foundation. He is also a trustee of St. Mary’s Parish in Elmira, and a youth sports official in the area.

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John Shea joined Chemung Canal Trust Company in 2014 with more than 20 years of Relationship Management experience. Mr. Shea held positions at Wilmington Trust as Assistant Vice President and Senior Private Client Adviser; BNY Mellon As Vice President and Sr. Consultant within BNY Mellon’s Global Risk Solutions group; ITS Associates as Relationship Manager; State Street Bank as a Senior Portfolio Accountant; and SEI as Portfolio Accountant. In November 2017, Mr. Shea began his new role with Chemung Canal Trust Company as an Investment Officer.

Mr. Shea earned a B.S. degree in Accounting with a minor in History from the University of Scranton, as well as an MBA from Boston University with a concentration in Finance and Investments. He currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Binghamton Boys and Girls Club and the Investment Committee of the Broome Community College Foundation.

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Retirement Services

Christopher K. Kelly joined Chemung Canal Trust Company in 2011 as a Senior Retirement Plan Manager. Mr. Kelly was promoted to Assistant Vice President in 2013 and then to Vice President and Retirement Services Department Manager in 2014. He has been working with employer-sponsored retirement plans since 1996 with firms such as Aon Hewitt, Diversified Investment Advisors (Transamerica Retirement Services), Baker Tilly, and MetLife. Mr. Kelly holds the Qualified Plan Financial Consultant, Qualified 401(k) Administrator and Certified Employee Benefit Specialist designations, as well as the Series 6, 63, and 65 securities licenses. He earned an MBA from Georgia State University and a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Chris is a member of the American Society of Pension Professionals and Actuaries (ASPPA) and serves on the South Hill After-School Program Parent Advisory Board.

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Lauren Zell joined Chemung Canal Trust Company in 2013 as a Senior Retirement Plan Manager. Lauren is responsible for managing and delivering our suite of administration, consulting, investment, education, and compliance services to our retirement plan clients. She has more than 30 years experience in the retirement plan industry with The Standard and United Retirement Plan Consultants. Lauren holds the Certified Pension Consultant, Qualified Plan Administrator and Certified Employee Benefit Specialist designations. She earned a BA from Wesleyan University. Lauren is a member of the American Society of Pension Professionals and Actuaries (ASPPA). She holds appointments as a test judge and competition judge for figure skating and volunteers in the skating community in that capacity.

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Michael C. Steffens joined Chemung Canal Trust Company in 2015 as a Retirement Plan Manager. His responsibilities include managing compliance, government forms, daily administration, and day-to-day customer service for clients. Mr. Steffens came to Chemung Canal Trust Company with more than 20 years of experience in a variety of retirement plan administration and consulting roles in Washington State, Indiana, and Alabama.

Mr. Steffens holds a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Georgia and a Master’s Degree from Indiana University, as well as the Qualified 401(k) Administrator designation. He is a member of the American Society of Pension Professionals and Actuaries.

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Jennifer McCullough joined Chemung Canal Trust Company in 2018 as a Retirement Plan Advisor.

Ms. McCullough has more than 30 years of experience within the retirement industry. Prior to joining the Retirement Services Group, Ms. McCullough was a Senior Compliance Consultant with CBIZ Financial Services. Ms. McCullough is a member of the American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries (ASPPA). Through ASPPA, she has earned the Qualified Pension Administrator (QPA), Qualified 401(k) Administrator (QKA) and Tax-Exempt & Governmental Plan Consultant (TGPC) credentials.

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William D. Roe joined the Retirement Services Group as a Retirement Services Specialist and IRA Administrator in 2016. He began his career with Chemung Canal Trust Company in 2014 as a Trust Operations Associate in the Wealth Management Group. Mr. Roe earned a Bachelor of Science from SUNY Oneonta in 2012 and earned a designation of Certified IRA Specialist (CIS) in 2016. Additionally, Mr. Roe currently coaches the junior varsity lacrosse team for Elmira High School.

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Trust & Estate Administration

Catherine Crandall joined Chemung Canal Trust Company in 2008 as Vice President / Sr. Trust Officer of the Trust & Estate Administration Department and was named Department Manager in 2009. Ms. Crandall previously worked for Registered Investment Advisor John G. Ullman & Associates, Inc. as an Account Executive and Chief Compliance Officer. She is licensed to practice law in New York, having earned a Juris Doctorate degree from Albany Law School at Union University, an LLM from Columbia University Law School, an LLM in Taxation from New York University School of Law, an M.B.A. from the University of Rochester–William E. Simon Graduate School of Business Administration, and a B.A. from St. Lawrence University. In addition, Ms. Crandall is a Certified Trust & Financial Advisor and a Certified Financial Planner™. Ms. Crandall currently serves on the board of Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Rochester.

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Gregory Stewart joined Chemung Canal Trust Company as a Senior Relationship Manager in 2016 and was elected Vice President the same year. He brings more than 19 years of experience in the financial services industry, most recently at BNY Mellon where he held roles in business development, relationship and product management. Mr. Stewart graduated first class honors in economics from the University of Birmingham (UK) and is also a regular member of the CFA Institute.

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Heidi Wahl joined Chemung Canal Trust Company in 2012. Prior to becoming an Associate Relationship Manager in the Trust and Estate Administration department, she was a Financial Advisor in the CFS Group. Heidi has more than 15 years of experience in the financial services industry. She holds a B.S. from Summit University. In 2010, she completed her Certified Financial Planner certification.

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Michael Hart joined Chemung Canal Trust Company in 2008 and has served in a variety of roles. His most recent was as a Trust Specialist with the Trust and Estate Administration department until he was promoted to Associate Relationship Manager in 2013. Mike holds a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Buffalo and completed his Certified Trust and Financial Advisor certification in 2014. Additionally, Mike serves as a director on the board of Woodbrook Assisted Living.

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Devin E. Wandell joined the Trust & Estate Administration Department in 2008 as a Trust & Estate Specialist and was promoted to an Associate Relationship Manager in 2011. He has been with Chemung Canal for 8 years, holding various positions in the Wealth Management Group area. Mr. Wandell was elected Assistant Treasurer in 2012. He is a graduate of the American Bankers Association National Trust School and is currently finishing his diploma from the American Bankers Association Graduate Trust School. Mr. Wandell in 2014 completed the CTFA certification as a Certified Trust and Financial Advisor.

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Andrea McClure joined Chemung Canal Trust Company in December 2014 as Manager of Tax Services. She has more than 25 years of experience and previously was a Senior Tax Accountant at Market Street Trust Company. Ms. McClure has been preparing taxes for 20 years, and in March of 2011, she became an Enrolled Agent. This is the highest
credential the IRS awards, and it gives her the ability to practice before the IRS. Ms. McClure earned her A.A.S. in Accounting from Alfred State College and a B.S. in Accounting from Elmira College. She previously served as Treasurer of Cub Scout Pack 63 in Corning, New York.